Chapter 535 - Ghost Mountain

Dark clouds loomed ominously over the vast sky, pressing down as if just an arm's length away, creeping steadily closer.

Fierce winds whistled, sweeping up countless towering waves into the air. Yet amidst the boundless sea, they amounted to mere splashes.

In the distance, a vast expanse of dark clouds covered a large area of the sea. While it remained sunny where Chen Fan sailed, far out at sea, dense clouds were spreading.

Stretching as far as his eyes could see, a massive lone island loomed amidst the winds and waves.

The instant Chen Fan caught sight of this island, he knew it was the Hidden Dragon Island, his destination.

Flying was forbidden under those dark clouds. Unless one was a Divine Nascent realm powerhouse, any creature daring to fly here courted death.

Lightning dragons roiled within the clouds, ready to smite any airborne intruders. This was the legacy of a sect that once ruled the Hong Domain.

Even though they had long since disappeared, becoming history, their formidable restrictions endured.

Chen Fan drove the wooden boat, speeding forth and overcoming all obstacles on the way. Half a day later, the Hidden Dragon Island was finally close at hand.

The pitch-black layer of clouds hung low, with lightning dragons tumbling within, emanating an intense sense of oppression.

Chen Fan found his heart pounding despite his powerful physique.

An enormous island that spanned hundreds of kilometers wide floated on the vast sea. Countless towering waves crashed onto its shores but failed to shake it in the slightest.

Chen Fan held his nomination token in hand as he closed in on the island. A trace of energy immediately erupted. It enveloped and pulled him flying toward the Hidden Dragon Island, bumping into a layer of barrier.

With a plop sound, Chen Fan felt his head spinning momentarily. Next, the scenery in front of his eyes changed drastically.

He found himself standing on a hillside. As he looked around, he realized this was more of a continent than an island.

A vast, endless forest entered his vision. The emerald green scenery was full of vitality. He could also occasionally hear the roars of beasts.

At the end of the vast forest was a tall mountain that pierced through the clouds and was shrouded in fog, vaguely peeking through. A desolate aura landed on him from just a glance at it.

Meanwhile, inside the forest, Chen Fan could faintly see some dilapidated buildings.

One could imagine how prosperous the Hidden Dragon Island was in the past. As a top-tier power of the Hong Domain, it commanded an island territory that spanned hundreds of thousands of kilometers. How prosperous and magnificent was that?

Even so, all of that had faded into obscurity.

The blood calamity affected the entire Tianwu Continent. The Hidden Dragon Island of the past was also reduced to ruins. Covered by the green forest, all one could see were vague images of its wreckage.

He could also see herbs that required special nurturing in the outside world everywhere, like ginseng, white fungus, earth fire grass, moon essence lotus, and many more. They were all aged herbs and full of potency.

Natural treasures could indeed be found everywhere on the Hidden Dragon Island. It was a land of countless opportunities.

Chen Fan quickly got moving and flew down the hill, sweeping up the natural treasures.

Although these herbs were centuries old, their grade was too low to be of use to Chen Fan. However, they represented a significant fortune for the Chen Clan. So, he gathered everything of value he encountered.

The day passed very quickly, and night fell.

Roar

!

Ah

!

Roar

!

Terrifying roars of unknown beasts echoed from the cloud-piercing mountain at the island's center. Everyone who heard the roars felt a deep fear as if a disaster was about to strike or an evil spirit would emerge from the mountain.

The noise was so terrifying that even Chen Fan shivered despite his calm demeanor.

What kind of madness had he not seen before? Demonic beasts? They were like pets to him, so he had long since gotten used to their roars. None could shake his psyche a bit.

Yet, the roars echoing from the mountain located tens of thousands of kilometers away had made him shudder. These weren't just the roars of living creatures. They were dry and hoarse, like cracked voices, or as sharp as sonic waves. The variety of noises all gave him an eerie feeling as if they didn't arise from living creatures.

If seeing the mountain during the day made Chen Fan feel desolate and cold, then in the latter half of the night, it turned into a ghastly atmosphere. Countless wisps of enormous death qi rose to the sky as if they were going to pierce through the clouds.

The cloud-piercing mountain seemed to have transformed into a ghost mountain. Just looking at it gave one the illusion of sinking into Avici Hell, sending chills down their spine.

Moreover, the endless roars of the various demonic beasts grew strangely quiet after dark. Only the terrifying noises from the ghost mountain echoed through the heavens and earth.

“How bizarre!”

Chen Fan stood on the branch of a tall tree and looked at the ghost mountain.

The thick deathly qi and eerie coldness felt like a demon, laughing silently at everyone on the island.

“Such dense deathly qi and vengeful qi. It’s even thicker than the qi found at the Fiendish Corpse Mountain Range. Who knows how many people died to form such a thick, deathly qi, like a ghost city!

“I fear there are great evil spirits on that mountain, not just one or two. Otherwise, it wouldn’t give off such a chilling sensation. It would be a disaster if a Divine Nascent realm ferocious creature came out,” Chen Fan muttered to himself, narrowing his eyes.

The trial at the Hidden Dragon Island would last for a hundred days.

The Hidden Dragon Island was open, and people had barged into an island that had been quiet for three thousand years. Who knew if the slumbering souls would be disturbed and bring forth an unpredictable disaster?

Chen Fan warned himself to be extremely cautious.

The terrifying roars went on until dawn. The starry light gradually faded, and the terrifying roars from the ghost mountain also gradually calmed down.

The Yin qi lingered for another three-quarters of an hour before dissipating into nothingness.

As the roars on the ghost mountain disappeared, the roars of the various demonic beasts in the forest gradually heated up, exactly like when Chen Fan had just entered the island.

Compared to the terrifying roars that came from the ghost mountain last night, the berserk roars from the demonic beasts felt oddly safe; they sounded much more pleasant to the ears.

After a night’s rest, Chen Fan was full of vigor. Brilliant light shone in his eyes.

The trial at the Hidden Dragon Island had already begun. He needed to do his best to search for opportunities in these hundred days to raise his cultivation and strengthen himself.

Of the thirty-six nations, the Great Li Imperial Court was given a hundred spots, the six great nations were given fifty spots each, while the rest of the twenty-nine nations each had thirty spots. At least a thousand people had stepped foot on the Hidden Dragon Island.

If those thousand people had been ordinary people, that number would have seemed too little, but for powerful martial artists, that was far from the case.